88 Minutes

After we started watching this, I found that it was nominated for a Razzie last year for both Worst Picture and Worst Actor.

It didn't win either, and sometimes the Razzies are way wrong, but this time I'm with them on the Worst Picture part. Hard to believe that a psychological thriller with Al Pacino in it could be so utterly uninteresting, but it was. Not only is it impossible to care about any of the characters in this show, but--well, the basic premise is that Pacino's character gets a phone call from an old enemy and is told that he has 88 minutes to live--and before the movie is half over, you find yourself wishing they would speed up time and make good on their threat, just to get it over with.

Neither of us were able to sit through the whole thing. Don't know whodunit, and don't care.

All About Eve

Hadn't seen this one in a long time, so when I came across it at the library I thought I'd give it another try. In retrospect, I won't stay that I wish I hadn't, but I will say that I don't think I'll need to see it again for another couple of decades.

I have a great deal of respect for Bette Davis, but I'm not quite sure why. I've never been crazy about her looks or any of her characters or anything. And she turns in a solid performance here as a self-absorbed star actress, so the movie didn't do anything to change my opinion of her one way or the other. For what it is, though, and for the times in which it was released, I guess the movie remains indestructible, as does Ms. Davis.

Best Part: George Sanders as the self-serving unscrupulous drama critic Addison DeWitt. I've always enjoyed listening to him ever since I first heard him as the voice of Shere Khan in Disney's The Jungle Book. Marilyn Monroe also has a few lines in this show, and--as it was before they made her into Marilyn Monroe(TM)--she looks gorgeous and is fun to watch.

beautiful boy - David Sheff

I came across this when I looked up 'live through it' on amazon - a different story but equally heart wrenching. This is the story of a young man's addiction to crystal meth as told by his father. It was well-written but painful to read as meth continues to re-take the son, even after numerous rehabs. Meth is truly destructive on Nic and on his entire family and friends.

One of the many facts I learned about methamphetamine was that it was used in WWII by the Germans, Japanese, and Americans to keep the army up for days at a time. From Wikipedia: One of the earliest uses of methamphetamine was during World War II when the German military dispensed it under the trade name Pervitin. It was widely distributed across rank and division, from elite forces to tank crews and aircraft personnel. Chocolates dosed with methamphetamine were known as Fliegerschokolade ("airmen's chocolate") when given to pilots, or Panzerschokolade ("tank chocolate") when given to tank crews. Originally meth was used for various health conditions and today it is still used in some cases of Attention Deficit Disorder, Extreme Obesity, and Nacolepsy.

It is one of the most difficult addictions to treat.

Nic Sheff has also written a book of his experiences as a drug addict. It's titled "Tweak" and I'll be reading it next.